The pine sapling looked small compared to the clumps of grass around it. It had grown so slow.
The grass had grown from seed just a handful of months before. Having quickly completed its task by producing hundreds of seeds, this grass was already dry and dying back.
I easily cleared the grass away from the trail I was making. Then I tried to remove the pine sapling. I pulled for all I was worth – it wouldn’t budge. The pine wasn’t gone until I had dug a hole and cut several strong, wiry roots. It wasn’t gone until it had taught me a lesson about the value of humbly, yet perseveringly, developing the roots that nobody sees.
The Bible is accurate in comparing human life to grass. What’s even a long lifespan, when compared to Earth’s history?
Isaiah 40:6b-8 states it this way:
“All flesh is grass,
And all its loveliness is like the flower of the field.
The grass withers, the flower fades,
Because the breath of the Lord blows upon it;
Surely the people are grass.
The grass withers, the flower fades,
But the word of our God stands forever.”
Fortunately, the Bible says something more optimistic about those who put their trust in God:
“Blessed is the man who trusts in the Lord,
And whose hope is the Lord.
For he shall be like a tree planted by the waters,
Which spreads out its roots by the river,
And will not fear when heat comes;
But its leaf will be green,
And will not be anxious in the year of drought,
Nor will cease from yielding fruit.” -Jeremiah 17:7,8
If you live just for the here and now, your legacy will be short.
If you seek God first, digging deep in His word to discover who He is, and why you can trust Him, God will fulfill His promise to you:
“He shall be like a tree
Planted by the rivers of water,
That brings forth its fruit in its season,
Whose leaf also shall not wither;
And whatever he does shall prosper.” -Psalm 1:3
So don’t live for just the here and now. Don’t rest satisfied with just a surface understanding of the truth. Prioritize your time with God. Develop a better root.